Many naughty citizens are speculating that Germany’s frantic, hasty rush to renewable energy may have contributed to the blackout because of growing grid instability caused by the wildly fluctuating wind and solar power feed-in.

The green mainstream media have reacted testily and hissy about such suspicions, insisting that the “blackout had nothing to do” with Germany’s use of the “clean” planet-saving energy. It’s like: “how dare you suspect renewable energy!”

Much higher prices for a much crappier supply

If unstable grids, blackouts and crappy supply aren’t bad enough, today we learn that we will are going to have to pay a hell of a more for this crap power in 2013. What a deal! It’s the story of the green economy: much crappier products – astronomically higher prices.

Millions of German householders will see their energy bills rise from January, with electricity firms publishing revised price plans this week – Vattenfall said its prices would increase by 13 percent. The average hike will be around 10 percent, it seems, now hundreds of providers have tweaked their prices ahead of next weeks’ deadline for new rates. The increases have been described as the biggest ever seen in generally price-stable Germany.

…The main reason given for price increases is the government’s guarantee of a rate for energy from sustainable sources that is well above market prices.
The biggest beneficiary of the environmental levy is the state, which is set to cash in €1.4 billion through the system in 2013.

13 responses to “Munich Blackout…Consumers Learn Today That Their Electricity Rates Will Skyrocket To Record Levels In 2013!”

“In the meantime, I’m now developing the habit of hitting the “SAVE” button every minute.”

You can get a very good UPS now for 50 or 60 pounds sterling! I’d recommend anyone who worried about losing work to power cuts to get one; this is going to happen more and more (it’s official government policy, it seems, in most of the EU)

Just for comparison ( and to “educate” the greens here in the US), is it possible to get an estimated projected average cost of electricity in Germany in terms of (US) $/KwH?

Our costs are all over the map; I expect Germany’s might be, too; so any average estimate would be fine.

I regularly mention the effect of renewable power on energy costs in Germany, and people aren’t interested. Maybe if I could compare your bills with ours I might catch their attention.

I’m sure I don’t have to mention that our environmental friends over here are strongly pressuring the re-elected administration to ditch fossil fuels in favor of renewables. Moreover, new EPA regulations are expected to result in the shutdown of ~200 coal-powered generating facilities in the next year.

70% of the electricity price are mandated fees and taxes so even though there is competition, it can only work on 30% of the price. Making it somewhat pointless to shop around.

My tariff is 23.5 Eurocent/kWh- that’s 29.8 US cents-, will probably go up 1.5 cent in 2013. Like many city dwellers, I’m at my local default supplier – many cities have one that operates a local cogeneration plant, delivering electricity and district heating – they’re very efficient and slightly cheaper than average.

Industry (or commercial users from 60 MWh/year upwards) have tariffs of about 13.5 Eurocents a kWh – 17.1 US cents. Their tariffs will rise by 1.5 cent a kWh as well IF they don’t apply for an exemption from the renewables cross subsidy fee; industries that can show they are in international competition get the exemption, and will then pay only 10 Eurocents a kWh.

The price of household electricity went up 18.5% last year in Australia. Current cost here in South Australia is 31.5 ¢ (U.S.) per kWh, rising to 35.5 ¢ and 38.5 ¢ at peak periods in summer. These are the highest in Australia due to our State Labor government’s enthusiasm for wind and household solar (PV). Wind has reached 22% of overall capacity and supplies around 4-5% actual (despite claims of 30%+ capacity factor). Household solar was enthusiastically taken up with a feed-in tariff of 52 ¢ per kWh, which has to be recovered by raising the general rate, leading to more people installing solar. Even our State government (eventually) saw the light and the tariff is much reduced for new installations.

Australia used to have low electricity prices, less than one third of Danish and German prices. The 80%+ rise in the last 8 years supposedly has little to do with our governments being keen on “renewables”, and everything to do with the suppliers “gold plating” the distribution network. “gold plating” means building transmission lines to isolated places to connect wind farms, boosting pumped hydro storage, installing lots of open cycle gas turbine plants (to cope with sudden fluctuations) etc. as well as maintenance and replacement of the system which was much neglected when owned by those state governments.

Fortunately, many of those Labor (Democrat in american) governments have been voted out of office. Only S.A. and the Federal ones to go (Tasmania is a special case). Their replacements aren’t much more knowledgeable but are capable of learning, and their enthusiasm for “renewables” is getting less and less, but they are stuck with the inherited mess.

Thank you all so much for the information! It will prove excellent in “discussions” I might have with others.

I hate to say this, because I feel like I might be seen as boasting (I’m not), but here in Eastern North Carolina our electric cooperative is currently charging about $0.11–$0.12/kWh and slightly more in the summer at peak power usage.

That said, they have warned us that, as the coal-fired plants go offline that they buy from, to expect about an 8%–10% increase in the next year and a 2%–3% each year thereafter for a number of years. There is also serious talk about planting a wind farm off the coast, which really concerns me. Coastal North Carolina is a major route for a wide variety of migrating birds.

Beyond increasing costs due to the shutdown of coal-fired plants and now the potential of increased taxes that you have in Australia, Graeme No.3, is the spectre of power grid instability!

Unbelievable that our US politicians don’t use the experience of other countries to help plan our own energy future!

Everywhere in sheds, attics, and basements are those oldfashioned type writers. They only need ink, paper, and manual power. During a blackout here in the Netherlands municipal personnel rediscovered them and used them for several days. The safest thing to do is to write your blogs with a type writer. If there is electricity in Germany, you can make scans and post them as usual.

It turns out that I was right with regard to the increase of the FIT cross subsidy – it rises from 3.5 Eurocent to 5 Eurocent.

BUT I have underestimated the inventiveness of our politicians. They have invented a whole slew of new fees, the funniest one to fund a slush fund for the compensation of off shore wind turbine operators in case they need to be compensated for power they COULD have provided but couldn’t because no transmission lines have been built.

These new fantasy fees add ANOTHER 1.5 Eurocent.

My tariff rises from 23.5 to 25.5 Eurocents/kWh; or roughly 13%. That’s what I call looting!